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Mildura monster month
  |  First Published: March 2016



With cod season well and truly in full swing, anglers have been taking full advantage of a steady river and heading out on the water in the hope of catching a big green fish. Reports of catches on lures have been pleasing so far.

Autumn is a great time to fish for native species in the Murray River around Mildura. Leaves falling from the trees are just one of Mother Nature’s ways of letting you know air temperatures are dropping, making it an optimum time to be targeting big Murray cod around Sunraysia. This is also the time to be upsizing lures and tackle and casting into snags.

The cooler weather will be welcomed by all anglers as it has been an extremely hot and dry summer with one really hot day rolling into the next.

Yellowbelly have been caught just about everywhere lately, and bait anglers using shrimp and yabbies have done most of the damage. Most of these fish have been in excess of 50cm and very fat. A simple river rig with a 2/0 hook with a bait of worm, shrimp or yabby is all you need.

Trolled and cast small lures have also been working well on yellowbelly around snag piles and weed banks, especially around Merbein and Wentworth.

There have been some good reports of large Murray cod being caught on lures in the Murray River. The Darling River also produced good numbers up until the end of February. Many of the fish caught on lures have been in excess of the 100cm range, and caught in multiple locations around Mildura.

Bait anglers in the shallows upstream of Mildura have been doing quite well with numerous reports of 20 plus fish up to 20lb on grubs in a single session. These fish have been very healthy and most were released, which is great to see.

Of course, there has been the usual ton of carp caught everywhere over the past month. Yes, they are a noxious species and it is always good to rid them of the system where possible, but they are also fun to fish for, particularly larger fish on small spin outfits with light braid. They are also a great species to teach the kids how to fish, because they are consistent most of the time.

The next month or so should bring some good fishing for all native species, in particular Murray cod. This is the time when fish will be foraging for food stocks to get them through the cooler months and they will become more active and willing to take big lures.

The key to fishing success in the autumn, or any time of the year for that matter, is time on the water. Fish are relatively easy to catch if you can find where their hidey-holes are and know what their movements are. You won’t know if you don’t go! Even though anglers will fish in the hottest of conditions, the cooler months are always a relief and produce some great fishing around the Sunraysia area.

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